Sous Vide Ribs: Time and Temperature

Sous vide ribs cook at 165°F (73.9°C) for 12 hours for a traditional barbecue texture. For meatier ribs that eat more like a tender steak on the bone, use 145°F (62.8°C) for 36 hours.

The ribs come out of the bag tender but without bark. A short finish on the grill or in the oven, with sauce or dry rub, adds it.

Baby back ribs and spare ribs

This guide covers pork ribs. Beef short ribs have their own settings, which the short ribs guide covers. Iowa State University Extension describes the cuts this way:

• Baby back ribs come from the top of the rib cage, next to the backbone and under the loin. They are short and curved, about 3 to 6 in (7.6 to 15.2 cm) long, and a rack weighs about 2 lb (0.9 kg). They are leaner than spare ribs.
• Spare ribs come from lower on the rib cage. The bones are flatter and straighter, the meat has more marbling, and a rack of 11 to 13 bones weighs 2.5 to 3.5 lb (1.1 to 1.6 kg).
• St. Louis style ribs are spare ribs with the breastbone, cartilage and gristle trimmed off, which leaves an even rectangle.
• Country-style ribs come from the shoulder area, not the rib cage. The rib settings here do not cover them. The pork shoulder guide covers the cut they come from.

The calculator uses the same times for baby back and spare ribs, as Jason Logsdon's pork chart at Amazing Food Made Easy does. The 145°F (62.8°C) and 165°F (73.9°C) times were tested on St. Louis cut ribs.

The USDA lists spareribs among the cuts from the side of the pig, the primal that also gives pork belly. Belly has its own settings, with a default of 150°F (65.6°C) for 24 to 48 hours.

Baby back ribs are leaner and smaller than St. Louis cut ribs. Where a setting shows a range, they are done toward the short end of it. Where a setting shows a single time, use that time for both cuts.

Anova's pork rib guide recommends St. Louis cut ribs and says baby backs also work but tend to be a little drier. The same guide says lower temperatures keep more moisture in the meat, so 145°F (62.8°C) is the setting to try if baby backs come out dry.

Temperature options and textures

• 145°F (62.8°C), meaty and extra tender. Succulent and meaty, like a very tender steak on the bone.
• 165°F (73.9°C), traditional barbecue. The default. Well rendered fat and meat that shreds as you bite.
• 176°F (80°C), fall off the bone. Very soft meat that pulls cleanly from the bone, in 8 to 12 hours.

Ribs hold a lot of connective tissue. Anova's guide explains that smokers cook them slowly so that this tissue converts to gelatin, and that the conversion depends on both temperature and time: the lower the temperature, the longer it takes.

That is why the 145°F (62.8°C) setting takes three times as long as the 165°F (73.9°C) setting. Iowa State's page notes that ribs taken only to 145°F (62.8°C) by ordinary cooking, the temperature at which the USDA counts them as done, are still tough.

The 176°F (80°C) setting comes from Douglas Baldwin's guide, which gives 8 to 12 hours at that temperature for spare ribs. The calculator's note on this setting says that at this temperature the meat comes apart in shreds, with a texture closer to a braise than to barbecue.

The pork temperature chart lists these settings beside the ones for chops, loin and shoulder.

Time and piece size

These are tenderizing times. Thickness changes them very little, so the calculator does not ask for it.

The times are for racks up to 2 in (5.1 cm) thick, measured through the thickest part including any bone. Thicker pieces heat too slowly and are not covered. Cut larger pieces down before cooking.

At 145°F (62.8°C) and 165°F (73.9°C) the calculator gives one time and no maximum. At 176°F (80°C) the window is 8 to 12 hours and the maximum is 12 hours.

The 36 hours and 12 hours are the single times in J. Kenji López-Alt's rib recipe on Anova's recipe site, which uses St. Louis cut ribs. Anova's guide prints ranges for the same textures: 24 to 36 hours at 145°F (62.8°C) and 6 to 12 hours at 165°F (73.9°C). The calculator uses the single tested time, which is the long end of each range. Connective tissue softens with time, so the short end of a range gives firmer ribs.

The calculator shows these times and the from-frozen times for each setting.

How to sous vide ribs

1. Remove the membrane. Anova's guide says to grip the papery membrane on the bone side with a paper towel and pull it off in one piece. Iowa State notes that if it is left on, it cooks leathery and keeps seasoning out of the meat.
2. Cut the racks. López-Alt's recipe divides each rack into portions of three to four ribs by cutting through the meat between the bones. That lets the pieces fit the bags.
3. Rub. Coat the ribs on all sides with salt and a spice rub. Anova's guide refrigerates the rubbed ribs for 4 to 12 hours before they go into the bath.
4. Bag. Seal each portion in a single layer. The recipe adds 4 drops of liquid smoke to each bag for a mild smoke flavor. For zipper-lock bags, use the water displacement method to push out the air.
5. Heat the bath to 165°F (73.9°C). Keep the bags in a single layer, fully under the water, and not overlapping. Crowded or overlapping bags heat more slowly, and the times shown will be too short for them.
6. Cook for 12 hours.
7. Chill. Move the bags to a bowl of ice water and chill them thoroughly. Anova's guide explains that cold ribs do not overcook during the finishing step.
8. Finish on the grill or in the oven.

Chilled ribs can wait before the finish. Anova's guide says they keep in the refrigerator for up to five days in their sealed bags. The meal prep guide covers chilling, storage and reheating.

Finishing on the grill or in the oven

Sauce goes on after the bath, in layers. The steps below are from Anova's pork rib guide.

Oven

1. Heat the oven to 300°F (149°C). Set the ribs meat side up on wire racks in foil-lined baking sheets.
2. Cook until the surface is sizzling and the ribs are heated through, about 20 minutes.
3. Brush with sauce and return to the oven for 10 minutes.
4. Brush on a second layer and cook until it is dry and sticky, about 10 minutes longer.

For dry ribs without sauce, keep roasting until a crusty bark forms, about 40 minutes in total.

Grill

1. Arrange the coals on one side of the grill, or set a gas grill to medium heat.
2. Put the ribs meat side up over the cooler side, cover, and cook until they are heated through and dry, about 15 minutes.
3. Brush with sauce, move the ribs to the hot side, cover, and cook for 7 minutes.
4. Brush on a second layer, cover, and cook for 5 minutes more.

For dry ribs, skip the sauce and grill them over the hot side for about 10 minutes in total.

A grill that is already lit can also finish the sides. Corn on the cob cooks in its own 183°F (83.9°C) bath for 30 to 45 minutes, and its guide covers a short grill finish.

Cooking ribs from frozen

The calculator adds 2 hours 15 minutes to allow the center to thaw and heat. Frozen ribs take 14 hours 15 minutes at 165°F (73.9°C), 38 hours 15 minutes at 145°F (62.8°C), and 10 hours 15 minutes to 14 hours 15 minutes at 176°F (80°C).

The 2 in (5.1 cm) limit applies from frozen as well. Cut the racks into portions and bag them before freezing. The guide to cooking from frozen covers the method for other foods.

Safety

The USDA safe minimum internal temperature for pork is 145°F (62.8°C). FoodSafety.gov lists it with a 3 minute rest. All three rib settings are at or above that temperature, and the ribs are pasteurized at the minimum time for each one.

That depends on the pieces being 2 in (5.1 cm) thick or less and on the bags staying in a single layer under the water. The article on whether sous vide is safe explains pasteurization and why slow heating is limited.

Common problems

The ribs are tough. The cook was too short for the temperature. Use the full 12 hours at 165°F (73.9°C) or 36 hours at 145°F (62.8°C).

The ribs come apart in shreds, more like a braise than barbecue. That is the 176°F (80°C) result described above. Use 165°F (73.9°C).

The ribs dried out during the finish. They went into the oven or onto the grill hot from the bath. Chill them first so the inside does not overcook while the outside browns.

There is no smoke flavor. A water bath adds none. Anova's guide suggests a small amount of liquid smoke in the bag.